SCOTLAND
Click on the pictures to see them in full
All pictures are Copyright©1993-2005 Søren Hagelskjær Møller
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If You haven't been to Scotland before, but You would like to visit the country, and maybe are a bit unsure of what to do, I am happy to share my experiences - e-mail to shm(at)shm.dk Below are some of the things I have experienced in Scotland. Click the pictures to see them in full |
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Near Glenfinnan Near Moray Near Fort Augustus |
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In Scotland, there is something for every taste, from the lowlands almost poetic beauty to the highlands rough and wild nature. There are very good shopping opportunities in the larger cities. If You fancy golf Scotland is an Eldorado, the golf courses are everywhere. If hunting or fishing is the thing the opportunities to find fine game or lakes and rivers, Scotland are very good. If You are more in a cultural state, there are a large number of mansions and castles, which describes the Scottish history very well. Most of them are open to public, as they have the same problems as in Denmark - taxes on inheritance and maintenance costs. |
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Blair Castle and the piper who plays daily |
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To me the highland with the rough nature is the favourite. I don't know if it has anything to do with the fact that Denmark is flat (highest point 278 meter ~ 912 feet) but the mountains are fantastic. Furthermore the Scottish people are tremendous, they are very warm, incredible hospitable and they have a humour very close to the one found in the western part of Denmark, which suits me very well being a confirmed West-Dane.
...And one must not forget they are very good at producing beer and not the least and maybe most important WHISKY (which I can't help collecting, because whenever I have visited a distillery I almost have to buy a bottle, but at least it is a souvenir I can use - for a short while that is). |
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On the way to Mallaig from Fort William |
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When I visit Scotland, I can unite several interests: nature, photography, whisky and the joy of experiencing something new. Scotland has as mentioned mountains, they are not fantastic high, but there are a lot of them. At one time, there was a debate in Scotland; just how many summits were more than 3000 feet (~ 914 meter). The common opinion was a number around fifty. Sir Hugh Thomas Munro, co-founder of the Scottish Mountaineering Club in 1889, decided to measure the summits in Scotland to find out. He finished doing that in 1891, and the result came as a surprise to most people as the number was 278. All mountain summits above 3000 feet (~ 914 meter) have since been called a Munro. Today there are 284 Munros in Scotland, and A. E. Robinson was the first to climb them all. He used 10 years to do that and finished his last summit in 1901. There are a lot of climbers who try to do the same, and they collect Munros. Some of the mountains demand climbing experience, whilst others can be climbed by all if the physical shape is fair (read: normal). The reason for the variation in the number of Munros is that the equipment to measure the height is better today, and the fact that there is some discussion about what makes a summit. However, as mentioned the official number today is 284 if you feel the urge.
I collected my first and to date only Munro in 1994 - Mount Keen in the bottom of Glen Mark not far from Brechin. Mount Keen is one of the easy Munros to climb or walk up would be more accurate (3080 feet ~ 939 meters). The experience was fantastic, and as they say it is cold at the top but the view is spectacular and definitely worth the trouble. I will never forget I looked down on a Tornado fighter, which came through the Glen on an exercise in low flight. |
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From the top of Mount Keen. |
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I this connection I stayed at a fantastic Bed & Breakfast called "The House of Mark Guesthouse". It was situated in the bottom of Glen Esk just where it connects to Glen Mark. I have stayed here half the times I have visited Scotland.
The house is an old ministers residence fro 1803, where You could get not only B&B but also a full boarded stay, a truly great experience.
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House of Mark |
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The food which was homemade, was more than the best restaurants worthy and when one ad the surroundings and the landlady, Bea Rawlinson, the restaurants only see the smoke. Some of the very good foods I have tasted are; rabbit, hare, salmon, pheasant, red deer, ox, lamb and wild duck - almost all of them had been previous inhabitants of the Glen. If you are the type looking for stars at such establishments, the stars are often given from the amount of facilities. If I have to give stars, it will be from an evaluation of the overall impression, it is of course a subjective evaluation, which cannot be fitted into any scheme, but I definitely give The House of Mark five stars out of five. To date this is the best place yet I have stayed in Scotland and I don't think it can be beaten. If you fancy walking, the place is simply perfect to all age groups, since there are good opportunities for those who just want a nice ordinary walk and for those who wants a bit more, for example climbing a Munro, Mount Keen is just round the corner from The House of Mark.
Unfortunately, The House of Mark doesn't offer B&B anymore as the ownership has changed. |
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The pictures above is from a walk into the bottom of Glen Mark and over a pass (not very high) and into the neighbor Glen, Glen Lee. The waterfall comes on the way to the pass. Picture 2 is the view from the pass and down on Loch Lee. The walk can be made in 4-6 hours all depending on your physical shape and how much you are in a hurry.
Not far from House of Mark is situated a small well whom Queen Victoria once visited. There is a small monument above the well and the monument bares an inscription of the event. |
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QUEENS WELL INSCRIPTION |
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Her majesty queen Victoria and his royal highness the prince consort visited this well and drank of its refreshing waters on the 20 September 1861 the year of her majesty's great sorrow
The great sorrow mentioned was the death of the Prince Consort later same year. |
hendes majestæt dronning victoria og hans kongelige højhed prinsgemalen besøgte denne kilde og drak af dens forfriskende vand den 20 september 1861 året for hendes majestæts store sorg
(Danish translation)
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Miscellanous links |
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Munros
If you want to know more about the different Munros, here are some links. |
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Distilleries
I have visited the distilleries below and given them stars from my own experience of the place.
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MacAllan (fantastic whisky) |
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Edradour (The smallest in Scotland) |
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Dalwhinnie1 (The highest in Scotland) |
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Glenturret |
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Glenfiddich (known by most) |
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1 Dalwhinnie doesn't have its own website , but here is a few about the distillery. |
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Castles
Scotland reeks of history, which can be seen by the number of castles spread around everywhere. The castles below are truly worth a visit.
Falconer with eagle at Scone Palace
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Blair Castle about 35 miles/60 km northwest of Perth. |
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Scone Palace Above 6 miles/10 km north of Perth. |
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Dunvegan Castle Situated at the north end of Skye. |
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Glamis Castle The late Queen Mothers birthplace. |
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Cities
Cities exists that are just different and well worth a visit. The cities below has made more than just an ordinary impression on me, and the few of them I only have visited once, will most definitely be visited again. There are numerous more places than the ones mentioned here, which are worth a visit, but I can't mention them all, so I have decided 5 will have to do.
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Pitlochry |
An incredible nice and pretty little town, a bit marked by tourism, but that is without significance. If you want to stay I can recommend the Dundarach Hotel (not far from Bell's Distillery) and a nice place to get a meal is The Old Smithy. |
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Fort Augustus |
The small town I situated along the Caledonian Canal and the special about the town is a number of locks connecting Loch Oich with Loch Ness. Despite a lot of tourists the town isn't overcrowded, and it is marked by a very calm mood.
The locks in Fort Augustus |
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Ullapool |
A small town in the very Northwest of Scotland. A very nice little town and the waste country you have to go through to get to the town is incredible, I had the impression that I was lost and driving in the wrong direction so deserted was the landscape - but impressive. |
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Oban |
The main attraction here is a local bankers building. He tried to build a copy of The Coliseum in Rome on a hill overlooking the town. The view from the coliseum is great, furthermore the shopping is rather good. |
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Edinburgh |
An international city, but definitely still worth a visit, if not else then for the shopping possibilities. Just north of the city is Edinburgh Crystal, where very fine crystal glass is manufactured. The crystal factory is definitely worth a visit, even if you just want to take a tour to see how crystal is made and cut. Edinburgh Crystal is unfortunately under administration so the website doesn't function anymore. However it should still be possible to visit the factory. |
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Places
Like cities there are places that most certain is worth a visit. My favourites are:
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Loch Ness |
Of course. You have to come and look for the Loch Ness monster yourself. In Drumnadrochit they have a Loch Ness monster museum, which is worth a visit even though you don't believe in the monster. They are displaying information gathered from several of the expeditions made through the years. A trip round the lake can also be recommended (in car). I think Loch Ness by far is more interesting than Loch Lomond, which I honestly find a bit of a disappointment. But everyone's taste are not the same - luckily. |
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Glen Coe |
A fantastic beautiful and rough landscape, which includes one of the most bloody events in Scottish history. |
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Skye |
Skye is an island west of Fort William. There is a bridge to the island, and a roundtrip is really an experience. But I will also recommend to take the ferry across from Mallaig. The landscapes are amazing and a visit at Dunvegan Castle on the north part of the island can be recommended. The island of course has a distillery - Tallisker. Sir Edmund Hillary practised in the mountains on Skye before he as the first climbed Mount Everest together with Nepalese Tenzing Norgay. Fort William by the way is situated at the foot of Scotland's highest mountain - Ben Nevis, altitude 4406 feet ~1344 meter.
From Skye |
